Alone
by Azure Ocean22
Summary: Zero is officially alone. Trixie was expelled, Vin is missing and Newton... Well lets just say Zero is the only member of I.N.K left. Even worse, Macbeth is now headmistress. So when a new student arrives just before the children of Pinkerton start to act strangely, what will Zero do? And how will she cope with being on her own?
1. Prologue Part 1

**A/N: Okay, this is my first I.N.K fanfiction, so let's see how it goes...**

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><p>Okay. Things have gone downhill. Way downhill. Lower than low. I can hardly describe how low. All of it's so surprising, so shocking, so terrifying, I don't even know how I haven't broke down yet.<p>

What's more is that everything that happened is all my fault.

I mean, I know I'm not the best person in the world, I can be moody, I guess. I'm not good with keeping my temper under-control and – as Trixie always _helpfully_ points out in her lectures- I hate orders. Well it's more of a huge dislike. Okay, it depends on my mood, the situation and the person giving them, but genuinely, I hate orders.

But I would never, _ever_ do something that would hurt my friends. Not intentionally at least.

That's what makes the blow worse. They probably think it's my fault, that's got to be why they haven't attempted to contact me.

Well, I know Trixie might take some time before she forgave me, or at least grudgingly accepted my apology, but Vin? I was relying on him, I guess now I know that was a mistake. My dad was right. The only person I can rely on is myself. That way nobody can let you down. That way no-one can break you and you can't break others. I thought for the time we were all together- members of I.N.K- that we could rely on each other even when we weren't on a mission, but that's all changed.

Everything that happened, all the events it only took two weeks! Nothing is the same anymore. But the changes, for the better or the worse, I can't decide. For the worse. Defiantly for the worse. There is absolutely no doubt what-so-ever that it's for the worse…

I guess it's confession time. I haven't been straight with you. Honest, I mean. Well… I have, if you really think about it. All I've been doing is picking among truths. Well, flaws in my personality that could've caused the disastrous events.

What I'm trying to say is, I've been avoiding a subject. An event. Many events, some of which you've probably already figured out. Yeah… I've been doing it on purpose, avoiding things and keeping secrets. I know it's not fair, but you're seeing this through my eyes, and, to be completely honest, I'm ashamed of myself. I probably could've done something, anything to help, to prevent it. But I didn't.

You'll find out what happened sooner or later, maybe sooner is better? I don't know. I'm not good logical things, my soul purpose in I.N.K was to fight, to protect the team and I failed. Trixie would know though, she's smart and bossy, that's the main reason why she was in charge, directing the missions and such. Newton too, with all his gadgets and sciency knowledge, and possible Vin, he at least has some common sense, even if it is miniscule.

Newton. _Newton…_

It's still a touchy subject and has a right to be. I still want to just bury everything. To hide it and pretend I'm not hurt, that I'm not feeling all this emotion, this jumbling of feelings. It's confusing and depressing and most of all it's scary. I haven't felt this before and I don't know what to do. There's no-one left. No-one who can help. I'm on my own now.

My name is Zero. I am the last remaining member of I.N.K.

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><p><strong>AN: I have a thought, I am needing a name for the 'new student'. They will be a girl, I have a few options of my own so it would be helpful if you could help me out.**

**My choices are: **

**Ashley**

**Abby**

**Kerry**

**Melanie**

**Maize**

**Jess (Jessica)**

**and Lizzie. **

**Let me now however you can, reviewing Pm etc. You can suggest your own idea's if you would like. At the end I will accept the most popular or best answer. The people that suggested the answer will be mentioned in the chapter where the girl's name is revealed.**


	2. Prologue Part 2

**A/N: I decided to post the next chapter today, since I'd already wrote it, what was the point in making you wait? This chapter is rather short, but I promise the next one will be longer, and it will explain what happened to Newton. Thank you to CurePassion99 who reviewed so quickly. Thanks, I really appreciate it!**

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><p>Wait, that's not what you might think it means. Don't jump to conclusions here, they're not all dead. Well, at least two of them are still alive… I hope.<p>

Trixie was expelled, right after Macbeth gained control. I don't think she had any control over what she was saying, but it defiantly was not the best idea to say all that, especially when Macbeth was standing right behind her, a cold expression plastered on her ugly face. Let's just say Macbeth was not pleased and neither were me and Vin when we found out Trixie was leaving.

Vin went missing, I don't even know how. He went to go change his trainers- he stepped in something pretty nasty- then disappeared. I ran up to his room, checked in every possible hiding place inside his room, then in every possible place in the other student's room. If they complained, there was a coat peg waiting for them. I searched everywhere and found nothing, zilch, zero. No trace at all, he just disappeared.

How could he even do that? I needed him! He left me. Everyone leaves me. Nobody cares about me… who would? I'm a freak, a hopeless case, Little Miss Gothic.

Newton. I-I can't explain now, I just can't take it in. How can I explain this when I don't understand myself? I mean, how can I grasp the concept, let along accept the situation and understand that it happened?

How did it even happen? It was basically a normal day, we all failed our maths tests, obviously, then –BAM- our whole world was turned upside-down.

It could even be literal with that expression, no-one could even begin to estimate what insanely-stupid and highly improbable scheme Macbeth will conjure up next. Your brain would explode! But what's even more mind-blowing is the fact that one of her plans actually worked.

I couldn't even believe it myself for at least a couple of days. Not only because it was impossible- literally impossible- but because me, Vin and Trixie were in shock and overwhelmed with grief, verging on depression.

One single moment changed everything.

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><p><strong>AN: I have a thought, I am needing a name for the 'new student'. They will be a girl, I have a few options of my own so it would be helpful if you could help me out.**

**My choices are: **

**Ashley**

**Abby **

**Kerry**

**Melanie**

**Maize**

**Jess (Jessica)**

**and Lizzie. **

**Let me now however you can, reviewing Pm etc. You can suggest your own idea's if you would like. At the end I will accept the most popular or best answer. The people that suggested the answer will be mentioned in the chapter where the girl's name is revealed.**


	3. Newton Part 1

"Okay, does everyone know what they have to do?"

I jerked awake; the voice startled me, as well as the dream. I snuck a quick glance around the room. Luckily, Trixie's chair was facing away from me, she was addressing everyone but was looking at the two boys who were crowded around her red office chair, nodding as she motioned to the screens. They were seriously going to damage their eyes leaning in that close.

I can't believe I didn't wake up. Even more unbelievable was that Trixie didn't notice me sleeping. I mean, I did nap just to pass the time, but I was sure one of them would wake me if Trixie had anything important to say. I guess I may have been wrong, or it may have just been the fact that Trixie just didn't have anything important to say. It wouldn't really be the first time.

Trixie yapped on endlessly and I would definitely live to regret it if I try and go back to sleep, so I decided to get up and abandon my idle lying. I stifled a groan with the back of my hand and reluctantly climbed to my feet, retreating to the back on the room to anxiously pace. I did this for a couple of minutes. Forward and back, turn and turn again. When that got boring I stopped, lent against the wall and impatiently tapped my foot against the floor; resisting the overwhelming urge to play some music. If Trixie heard, she'd murder me.

For a second time I glanced around the room- my foot still tip-tapping- taking in everything. The blinking computer screens that beeped and blipped so often I thought it may drive me to the insanity of screaming and punching the monitors. The few windows that let in zero air and did nothing to cool you down on a hot day were flung open, attempting to tempt in a breeze, but, as expected, doing absolutely nothing to help eliminate the humidity of the room. A small couch was spread out across the floor- where I had previously been napping- and a few multi-coloured bean bags to sit on. Posters of all kind were spread across the walls, helping to hide the bareness of them.

They showed our different personalities. For me there was music posters -mostly rock- and images depicting deadly martial arts moves. For Vin; several James Bond posters each one with him posing with a gun or some special effect explosions in the background. I enjoy teasing him by saying they look crap- though he always knows I'm joking. For Newton; science posters of famous scientists and science-related humour only he understood even after explaining it for the umpteenth time. For Trixie; some posters of movies she likes but mostly plans and diagrams of things Macbeth could spring on us and previous schemes we had thwarted. _Wait, thwarted? When did I get so posh? _I pondered the thought for a while.

When I tuned back, Trixie was still droning on about safety precautions and I still wasn't listening- there was no doubt Trixie would lecture me later- but I'd already heard it a billion times, one more reminder and my brain would explode. Maybe even literally. _Gross. Just imagine brains splattered all over the- Ew, I do not even want to go there. _It looked like Vin was beginning to zone out too and I really couldn't blame him. He rolled his eyes and combed his fingers through his blonde hair before reluctantly tuning back in as Trixie addressed another aspect of something-or-other.

I fumbled around in my pocket, searching for my phone. My fingers grazed the metallic surface, nicking a scab on my finger on the edge of my phone case. _Ow, you little- _I gave a silent tut and snatched my phone, carefully sneaking it out of my pocket and into the open. I gave a once-over glance at the others- Vin looked over at me and I froze but again he rolled his eyes, ignored my phone and turned back to Trixie like he never saw a thing- before pressing the power button, causing my phone to switch on. The surface silently lit up. I used the touch screen to scroll down the home page and click on Options and turned my phone on silent. I didn't want any unexpected phone calls.

"Zero, are you even listening?" Trixie questioned, shooting me a disapproving glance. I discretely slipped my phone back, although I was sure she had noticed it, so there was hardly any point in trying to hide it. Her brown eyes probed for an answer. I really disliked that stare. I winced and slowly nodded once, putting on my best innocent face. I don't even have an innocent face, I'm hardly 'Innocent', more like 'Gothic Freak That Has A Very Bad Background, A Moderate Dislike To Rules And An Extremely Short Fuse', other than that, what's not innocent?

She sat in silence, arms folded waiting for an answer, sarcastic reply or brush off, all of which were very common. Newton and Vin had also turned to watch. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Vin, '_The King of discretion' , _mouthing 'plan' behind his hand. You can not get more obvious than that, I mean, seriously, it's almost impossible. I rolled my eyes, like it was the most obvious answer ever, and attempted to place a spin of sarcasm or at least 'I really can't be bothered' attitude on the end. "The plan." I said with a small, uninterested shrug. It came out sounding lamer than I expected. "We're talking about the plan." Trixie eyed me for a couple more seconds before –quite to my horror- _continuing to review the safety precautions._

I only just managed to contain my sigh of relief when Trixie finally stopped talking and allowed us to leave. "Oh and don't forget-" she called after us but was interrupted by Newton, who by now was running on a very small stretch of patience. Vin lost his over an hour ago. Me? I don't have patience.

"We'll be fine, Trix." He said with a small, very forced, light-hearted chuckle. Vin rolled his eyes and gave a small wave, flashing her one of his '_supercool, reassuring smiles' _as he liked to call them. I just thought he looked like an idiot, especially when he face-planted the wall.

"No matter how much you try, you will not be able to phase through the wall." I said, resting my thumb and index finger on my forehead like I was in pain and he just grinned back, finding it more amusing than painful. I gave him a ghost of a smile as I walked through the door, Vin steadying his pace to match my own, joining me at my side. "Y'know, I don't think I could take much more of Trixie, especially after she would've bit my head off for tuning out." I allowed myself to give a glance at Vin who's mouth has gone slightly slack-jawed, before I stifled a sigh and strode over to where Newton was waiting by the wall.

Vin closed his mouth and gave a small, microscopic shake of his head, his lips spread in a smile, his eyes never leaving me as I peeked my head around the corner and declaring that the coast was clear, disappearing around it. "You're welcome." He replied, seemingly to mid-air, knowing that was the closest thing he had ever had to an actual 'thank you'.

We walked the rest of the way in silence, the only eventful moment was when I bumped into Van along the corridor in the girl's dorms. She was moaning about her moisturising face mask- which made her look somewhat like an alien- airily shot me cruel remark before hissing 'freak' and disappearing into her room. Luckily, she didn't spot Vin and Newton, who had ducked back behind the bend in the corridor and closed the door before I could get my revenge.

After that, nothing exciting occurred. Unfortunately, I had Trixie yapping in my ear, though my headphones, relaying orders and _going over the plan again. _I can't even describe how tempted I was to ditch my ear-piece. The only thing preventing me from doing it was that I actually liked these headphones. We flattened ourselves against the wall and waited for Trixie's go ahead. "Okay, Trix, we're in position." Newton whispered. It was slightly unnecessary, there was no-one else in the room bar us. I guess he was probably taking one of Trixie's safety precautions into account. I wouldn't bother.

"_Good." T_rixie replied. _"Zero?"_

"On it." I assured. I knew the door was locked and I wasn't really in the mood for stealth, so I just booted it open. As simple as that. Well, I did lurch forward and grab the door before it smashed into the wall and consequently gave away our position. Still holding the door, I ushered the boys inside and hushed Vin as his footsteps echoed around the silent hall, way too loud for comfort. I silently rested the door back into its original position, making sure it didn't close properly otherwise it would lock, so we had an extra escape route if it was needed.

We crouched down, keeping light on our toes in case we had to move fast. Macbeth was talking to her fish, Vagner, as she normally did. Vin suppressed is giggles by promptly shoving his fist into his mouth. Not the most effective plan, or the most pleasant. I thought it was funny, but didn't want to alert Macbeth where we were so I controlled myself.

We watched as Macbeth picked up a jar containing a bright blue butterfly. I'm not even going to attempt to name the species, because I'm clueless when it comes to butterflies. "Hello, Mr Soper." She crooned, stroking the outside of the glass as the butterfly flew around it's glass containment. I watched it's confusion as it bashed into the an invisible wall. That was very cruel. Even crueller, turning a human into a butterfly.

"Zero, no." I felt a hand grip my arm as I attempted to lurch forward and spring out at Macbeth. Vin pulled me back behind the wall and with Newton's help the two boys restrained me- only because I allowed them to- and pinned me against the wall, hissing warnings in my ears. "Newton, get your hair outta my face." Vin complained, attempting to breathe without sucking in the younger boy's ginger hair. I just sulked, not even laughing as I usually would. They never permitted me to stuff Macbeth into a garbage can, even though she deserves it ten times more than anyone else at this school. It totally sucked.

"Okay." I whispered, rolling my eyes as the boys cautiously released me, Vin giving me a warning look that clearly stated, _don't try it. _"I'll stick to the plan." I said, rather reluctantly, sticking my tongue out at him.

"_Team, you know your parts-" _Trixie began.

"Oh really?" I asked keeping my voice to a low whisper, but much louder than I intended. "Maybe you should remind us again." And we're back to the sarcasm.

"Zero!" Newton said disapprovingly, just after Vin delivered a sharp kick to my shin as a warning.

"_Go on, Pinkerton is counting on you."_Trixie instructed, her voice slightly cold, while I rubbed my shin, shooting daggers at Vin, who guiltily looked away and tried his best to ignore me. Newton gave a small shake of his head before displaying the palm of his outstretched hand to us. Nestled there were three light pink, pea-sized balls of bubble gum. I took a piece and placed it in my mouth, chomping on it until I was able to blow a decent sized bubble. I swelled up, as big as my head and burst engulfing my face in a pink, rubbery mask which would conceal my identity from Macbeth as long as I was wearing it. On either side of me, Vin and Newton followed suit.

The bubble-gum masks were an ingenious idea that Newton came up with, it covers your whole face, and hair, since me and Newton would be easily recognised by it, being the only children in Pinkerton with white- for me- and ginger- for Newton- hair. In fact he thought up and created all of our gadgets, along with many practical jokes and handy gizmo's which can get you out of a bad situation. For example, smoke bombs, stink bombs and a lot of things to do with bubble-gum and ink. "Let's go."

Macbeth was going to pay. Big time. She was attempting to get rid of Mr Soper and become headmistress of Pinkerton. As per usual. But that wasn't going to happen, not on my watch at least. She was The Worst Teacher In History. No way was I allowing her to become The Worst Headmistress In History too. I lead the way, tailing Macbeth as she began to stroll outside using some secret passage way that could be handy for later missions, Vin only a few paces behind, clutching some new gadget Newton had given him. Speaking of Newton he was trailing behind, having to run every few steps to keep up with us. I poked my head out form around the outside wall of the student's dorms to check the surrounding area, holding one hand up at my side as a signal for the boys to wait.

Almost immediately I was ducking back and flattening myself against the wall, praying that I hadn't been seen. Macbeth was standing there, her back facing me, meaning, unless she had eyes in the back of her head- which I seriously doubt- then she couldn't have seen me. At least, that's what I hoped. "She's there." I whispered. "We gotta stop here." I said urgently, Vin and Newton frantically nodding in agreement. Together, we simultaneously sprung out of our hiding spot.

"Stop right where you are Macbeth!" Vin declared, pointing a finger ahead of him like it would do him a world of good.

"We know exactly what you're planning." Newton added, which was a blatant lie. We assumed she was trying to dispose of Mr Soper and promptly swung into action on that assumption. Although it was well-planned we had no idea what we were up against machine-wise...

It seemed I was the only member of INK that had realised Macbeth was no longer where I saw her three seconds ago. "Damn." I muttered under my breath. Vin and Newton looked at me utterly confused at the disappearance of Macbeth. I just shrugged in reply. "Hey, Mission Control, can you pin-point Macbeth's location?" I asked, deciding that I'd apologise to Trixie later, realising I had been slightly out of order earlier. Anyway, to explain the nickname, I'd taken to calling anyone directing us 'Mission Control'. It kept their identities secret if Macbeth was listening in on us and prevented a lecture for using their real names and putting them at risk.

"There's no need." A victorious, throaty laugh that could only belong to Macbeth- because, seriously, she needs to get updated on her evil-villain laugh- rang out. My gaze flickered to the building's roof where- _hey look at that- _a platform was jutting out of the top of the building, Macbeth precariously placed atop it, looking very uncertain about the safety of the weak-looking structure preventing her from falling to her death. Her glasses were paced haphazardly on her long pointed nose.

"What's wrong Macbeth?" I taunted. "Scared of heights?" I asked, my eyebrows raised, fists clenched and arms folded. I mean business. A metal ladder shot out of nowhere, making extra sure it smashed into my legs, flipping my over before I had time to jump it. The ladder positioned itself next to the building, propped up against the edge of the platform, held in place by metal bolts that drilled into the bricks. _That ladder is going to pay... big-time._

I scowled as I took Vin's outstretched hand. He helped me to my feet, him and Newton wearing matching concerned expressions, while Macbeth carelessly slid down The Ladder Of Doom. "I hate ladders." I decided, unaware that I had voice my thought aloud. Vin shrugged and Newton nodded in agreement, although he still had a wary eye trained on Macbeth. "Okay, so you've shown us your stupid ladder thing." I shot daggers at the ladder as it shook a little, like it was laughing at me. "But what ever far-fetched idea you've come up with, it's not happening so you might as well give up, 'cause I have a History exam tomorrow and I really need to revise." I stated flatly.

This was a waste of time. Time I could be using to do anything else. But no, I had to be here. There whole thing was going to turn out how it normally did, us winning, Macbeth losing. Plus, I seriously can not afford to fail this exam. "Give up?" Macbeth only just managed to splutter the words out. "Give up?" she repeated, like it was the most ludicrous idea she'd ever heard, just like her hair was the most ludicrous thing I'd ever seen.

"Are you deaf or something? That's exactly what I just said!" I snapped. Macbeth tensed. I bit the inside of my lip, wishing I'd held my tongue. _Great. Way to go, Zero, you just had to provoke her, didn't you? _Damn my short fuse. Trixie was- with absolutely no doubt- going to lecture me when we got back.

Macbeth, on the other hand, allowed one of her stupid, high-pitched laughs to escape her lips, the silence seemed to magnify the sound. It hurt my ears! By the way Vin and Newton were wincing, they were in the same boat. "The fun is just getting started." She promised.

"Yippee." I muttered under my breath, my voice oozing with sarcasm. "I can't wait."


	4. Newton Part 2

Dust kicked up around us. I bit the inside of my cheek as I glanced around. The wind was picking up, storm clouds rolling in much faster than normal. This is going to be a very big storm. I could almost feel the electricity in the air. There was a sense of tranquil, the calm before the storm, then the moment of peace was shattered.

A flash of lightning made me jump. I sprang sideways, colliding into Vin as hurriedly reversed when lightning struck right next to my foot. I stumbled a couple of steps, my eyes trained on the black scorch mark splattered across the ground, knowing only too well I could've just been fried. Vin shot me an alarmed glance, he was trying to catch my eye but I ignored him. No offence to him but I really didn't want him fussing over me in front of Macbeth. My heart was racing much faster than I would like admit as Macbeth allowed herself to give another psychotic laugh. "Twitchy are we little bunnies?"

I growled and narrowed my eyes, clenching my fists and beginning to advance forward before I'd fully recovered from the shock. She tries to get rid of Mr Soper, I almost get fried by lightning and she thinks it's funny? I was going to kill her- not literally of course. I'm no murderer. But, as expected, Newton and Vin gripped my arms in a futile attempt to restrain me. I didn't want to hurt them, so, I reluctantly stopped in my tracks. A second fork of lightning struck right in front of us, just as I submitted. "What is this lightning's problem?" Vin exclaimed, stepping back as Newton nearly bowled him over, Vin's normally cool composure threatening to abandon him.

"Yeah, I am not a lightning conductor!" I added, scowling as I addressed this to the sky as if it could hear me. I mean, the sky isn't alive, of course it couldn't 'hear' me because it doesn't have ears. My scowl rested on Macbeth. Those strikes were way too close for comfort and she probably had something to do with it, especially if her grin was anything to go by. I gave a questioning glance around as I raised my arm to shield my big blue eyes, trying to prevent the dirt, dust and god knows what else from getting in. The wind had really picked up over the last minute or two. Especially since Macbeth pressed that button on her arm...

_Crud._

My mind mentally put the pieces together, and screamed at me for being so stupid. _How could I miss this? _I punched Vin on the arm- by accident of course, it was intended to be a tap- to get his attention. Let's just say I got it, as well Newton and Macbeth's. "Ow." He complained, glaring at me and rubbing his arm more than unhappily. "What was that for?" He demanded, as I didn't normally go around punching people unless it was for a perfectly valid reason, or because Burt was being an idiot and I needed to prevent him from stuffing a student into the nearest garbage can.

I rolled my eyes and ignored his question. I lowered my voice to a whisper. "She's built a weather machine." I explained, jerking my thumb in Macbeth's direction as I said it. My jacket was lifted up, being tugged by the wind t the same time I could feel my feet beginning to slip across the ground as I was sucked towards Macbeth. Vin's eyes widened and he relayed the information to Newton, then after turning back to me and realising I was slipping by my alarmed expression, he reached out and snatched my wrist and tugged me back a few steps. I was the lightest of the three so the suction was having a quicker effect on me.

I backed away with Vin still pulling me and Newton following us at my other side, ignoring the swaying trees and how we were repeatedly being hit by things flying in our direction. Litter and tree branches, you name it, everything seemed to be zeroing in on us. He pushed my head down, forcing us both to duck as a brick sailed in our direction. It flew harmlessly over our heads but made a sickening crunch when it hit the ground several metres ahead of us. I could see it had cracked the ground and was reminded that could have been mine, or Vin's head. "Get to the lamppost!" I yelled, realising that it may be the safest place to hold out, it can stop us from being dragged by the wind.

I could hardly see two feet in front of me as I straightened up, and, after spinning around to find the boys were gone, I lost the direction of the dorms. Trixie's voice was whipped away by the wind as she spoke, trying to help or screaming opposing instructions I couldn't tell. I sprinted in completely the wrong direction, only realising ten seconds later when I promptly changed my path and headed back.

Thunder boomed overhead as the delayed rain finally began to fall. It created a fine mist which proved to be even more unhelpful with locating the boys. Now I was indefinitely lost with Macbeth out there somewhere, hunting us down and the wind creating a whirlpool-like suction. Ahead of me I could finally see Vin and Newton, yelling at each other as they clung to the lamppost. I tore forward, feeling my feet slip as I ran. Vin spotted me, nudging Newton, he nodded in my direction and the two boys yelled what I could only assume were encouragements. Vin outstretched his hand, reaching out towards me. My fingers grazed his palm as I felt my body being dragged back by an invisible force. "Zero!" He screamed urgently. "Take my hand!"

I extended my hand a second time, biting back a sarcastic response and running harder, but to my disappointment my fingers slipped through his grasp again. I was fighting a loosing battle. I only had one more shot at this then I knew I was doomed. Vin looked terrified, distraught even. "Vin!" I yelled, throwing myself forward. My fingers gripped his left elbow, running down his arm and reaching his hand. Shocked, he closed his fingers around mine upon instinct, locking me in place. I started to use his arm to pull myself closer. Then I paused. The wind nearly took out my feet, I was jerked about, a scream rising in my throat. "Hurry!" I exclaimed, just as my feet were swept out from underneath me.

My knees scraped across the ground, then it must've looked like I was lying on an invisible table the way I was lying parallel to Vin, who was practically hugging the lamppost with all his might, slowly pulling me closer, inch by inch. Perspiration dripped down his forehead, mixing with rain and dripping into his eyes and mouth, but he was ignoring the whole thing, his eyes never leaving mine for even a moment. His teeth were gritted, muscles screaming in protest but in his mind he'd be damned if he let go of me. He'd never forgive himself. "Zero!" He panted. "Hold on!"

"Like there's some other option!" I replied, a twang of sarcasm showing in my voice.

Vin groaned, his fingers were slipping. He tightened his grip, almost stopping my blood-circulation with his vice-like hold. "Newton!" He yelled. "A little help would be much appreciated!" Newton extended a skinny arm. He was the youngest and smallest member of INK, so he had an excuse when he couldn't reach. He made another attempt, loosening his grip a little on the post, stretching out further, his hands grasping the air just in front of my jacket sleeve. Life was so cruel.

"Guy's!" I exclaimed as I was jerked backwards, but still held in place by Vin who was valiantly refusing to release me. "Vin, I swear if you let go of me I will hang you from the roof by your undies for eternity." I threatened, my blue eyes searching his face for any signs of fear, not that I could see much, his features all but his eyes and mouth were concealed. I didn't want to face Macbeth on my own and it seemed he didn't want me to either.

"Zero…" His energy was sapping fast. His determination and refusal to give in had given him a boost but it was beginning to take a toll on him. The adrenaline that was coursing through his body- _like when you're on a roller-coaster, slowly going up and you have that massive rush on anticipation and you're suddenly wondering why the heck you were putting yourself through this, but then you drop, the ride ends and you run back around and queue up for another go_- was beginning to wear off.

He was faced with a dilemma. His grip was slipping on both me and the lamppost. He could let go of me and readjust his grip on the lamppost, saving himself but also resigning himself to hanging from the roof by his underwear for an eternity. Or he could release the lamppost and face what ever thing is waiting for us together, hopefully preventing each other from having our identities revealed along the way. Or none of the above. "Newton, grab Zero when I drag her forward." Vin instructed as I braced myself. "Three… Two… One… GO!"

Vin yanked his arm back as hard and fast as he could. I was propelled forward, almost head-butting the lamppost while Newton managed to grab a handful of my sleeve. With both of them helping I was slowly pulled to the lamppost where Vin pinned me between his arm and the metal. Well, I had my arms wrapped around the lamppost, Vin's around my shoulders as he gripped it, keeping me from being sucked in and doing a fairly good job of shielding me from the rain. "We need back up!" Newton yelled, the wind nearly drowning out his squeaky voice. "Someone, call Trix!"

"Also, we need a decent weatherman." I added. "This is definitely not a 'clear, uneventful night'. God, that guy should be sacked."

"And a forklift to clear all the debris." Vin supplied, contributing to the conversation and grinning his goofy grin. Newton just rolled his eyes.

I went for my headphones. I could hear her trying to say something but the wind was too loud. "Trix? Trix!" I yelled. I couldn't hear her reply. I just shrugged which proved to be very difficult in the situation at hand. I mean, because I was squished between Vin and a lamppost, slowly and inevitably gravitating towards the Centre Of Doom- not for any other reason.

Back to the situation at hand, everything seemed to be going good, there was no lightning but lots of thunder and the wind howled loudly, forcing us to scream to be heard over the storm. That was until the ladder decided to change things. Now you see why I now have a very big hatred towards them. Newton didn't notice the ladder. It had lost The Battle Of Endurance and submitted to the wind, allowing itself to be ripped from the wall and pulled towards us. "DUCK!" I shouted, sliding my hands down the lamppost and crouching into a ball while Vin locked us both in place, assuming Newton would do the same.

I heard a loud clang of metal scraping against metal which made me cringe and almost lose my grip on the pole. Then something altogether more frightening. A cry for help. "Newton!" I raised my head, my arms already reaching out for Newton as the ladder crashed into him, knocking him from the post and sweeping him into the wind. I could see his face, eyes wide and mouth ajar, fearing easily showing. Time was so cruel. It seemed to slow down leaving us in slow-motion as Newton reached out for the lamppost, his fingers missing, just brushing against the metal but unable to grab hold. I watched as he was sucked up by the wind, his mouth open wide as he yelled but his voice whipped away by the wind.

"Newton!" I screamed as I attempted to follow him but Trixie's voice screamed from Vin's watch, much louder than before, ordering him to stop me. That's what she must've been doing. Finding a way to enhance the sound on our communicators so we would be able to hear her. I yelled and thrashed around, threatening him constantly as I tried to wriggle free. "He needs us!" I shouted, my distraught voice seeming to have next to no effect on him. Then I pulled the dirtiest trick in the book. "What if it was me? You'd want to help, right?" I thought back to previous missions. I had always disobeyed direct orders, putting the team ahead of stupid mission priorities and I had frequently rescued Vin from the clutches of Burt on many an occasion. _Gosh I am cruel._

"Zero… I… I…" he stuttered, looking shocked and having not previously thought up some clever answer to retaliate to that. _The guilt trip always works._

He released the lamppost. We were sucked into the eye of the storm where it was eerily tranquil. Macbeth grinned wickedly. "Two little bunnies caught, two to go!" I tilted my head in confusion. _But, Newton…?_

Vin slid his hand under my arm and helped my to my feet. Well, he practically dragged me to my feet before releasing me and trying to be inconspicuous as he searched for Newton. I did the same with harmless glances around, but I had dropped into a Karate stance and checked Macbeth's position every once in a while. Then, I noticed it. I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. It took every ounce of my self-control not to scream. Vin gently shook my arm, his face creased with concern. "Hey, hey, what's wrong?" He asked.

I gulped and pointed over to a particularly big lump of debris. The ladder was lying on top of it, coated in muck and slightly dented in places but still The Ladder. Only that wasn't it. In between one of the steps, a human hand was poking out, some green and brown sleeve attached. Memories flashed before my eyes. His high-pitched, sometimes annoying giggle, grinning up at us, bouncing up and down in joy and hugging me, especially when I didn't want him to. My eyes blurred with tears, I pushed them back. "No." Vin whispered.

"No!" I screamed. That sleeve attached to the hand... it's Newton's... and it wasn't moving.

I advanced towards him but Vin wrenched my arms behind my back, keeping me away. "No, we can't. We've gotta get outta here." I struggled against him. Newton needed us. We couldn't be too late. We couldn't! "Please!" He begged, his voice shaking a little, like he might burst into tears at any moment. _We're too late... _The blow felt worse than the hardest punch I had ever received. It felt like I'd been stabbed- and I'd had previous experience with that. It was like something deep down was scratching, scraping at my organs, demanding to be felt. It was the worst pain I had ever had the misfortune of having, and I'd felt a lot of pain.

I submitted. Vin grabbed my hand and wheeled me around. I allowed him to drag us through the storm, him straining to pull the both of us through after I'd gone into shock. He lead us to the forest, helping me up when I tripped, pushing branches away so they didn't lash out at me. Zombie-like, I followed him as he climbed a tree, Vin helping me all the way, pointing out decent footholds and handholds, all but having to move my hand and feet into position. We waited in silence, Vin with him arm around me, pulling me close to make sure we were both decently covered by the branches while Macbeth passed below us, cursing the Invisible Network Of Kids.

I didn't protest when he practically carried me down the tree and began dragged me to headquarters, where Trixie didn't lecture me, she was too busy sobbing in her red office chair after having seen everything on the blinking, beeping computer screens. Now I really did what to punch the monitors, because they were locked on his unmoving body, making Trixie cry harder. She had covered her face with her hands, her brown hair falling over the rest of her face as she sobbed.

Vin ripped off his mask, allowing his blonde hair to flop forward. I did the same, dislodging my headphones and making them nearly fall off. I pushed my white-blonde hair out of my face, not even caring that it probably had gone slightly static and readjusted the position of my headphones. I was biting my lip hard, trying to push everything back, to block it all out but I couldn't. I could taste blood in my mouth and I knew I couldn't handle this. I needed to get out of there before I broke. Without a word I exited the room, ignoring Vin as he gave a half-hearted attempt to call me back, tears streaming down his face and Trixie as she wailed.

I stormed down the corridor, not even acknowledging Kathy's presence as she politely asked what was wrong. She flattened herself against the wall as I stormed past, whimpering slightly, probably expecting to be on the receiving end of my bad temper. I flung open my bedroom door and slammed it behind me, collapsing on my bed in a state of complete exhaustion and a range of other emotions I've never experienced before.

I turned on my headphones, blasting some hard-core heavy metal through Vin's iPod for a while, flicking through a martial-arts magazine, attempting to drown out everything that just happened, all the emotions I was feeling. As an explanation, my phone was broken so Vin had lent me his iPod. I was uncertain but he reassured me that he didn't need it, his phone contract allowed him to update to latest smartphone which had some awesome features, so if I liked I could keep his iPod. I still feel awkward about it, but hey, if your best friend gives you free stuff you can't exactly say no, can you?

Anyway, the music didn't work on cheering me up like I'd expected. In fact, the songs about death, drugs and god knows what else only made me feel worse. I angrily threw my magazine across the room watching as it smashed into the wall and then hit the floor where it stayed, unmoving in a position where it was likely to crease the pages, did nothing to improve my mood. Then I switched the song to one that would perfectly explain my current whirlwind of emotions, the unexplainable pain in my stomach. As Helena by My Chemical Romance blasted out of my headphones, I hugged my knees to my chest and slowly began rocking backwards and forwards, my face on my knees.

Then I did something that I did not do very often.

I cried.


	5. Trixie Part 1

I lay face-down on my bed, my tears long since run dry. It felt like a crime but I couldn't cry any more, the tears refused to fall. Although the gnawing, scratching, clawing sensation was still there right in the centre of my stomach, demanding to be felt. I have no idea what it is, but it sure is painful. It was silent. Everywhere was. My room, the hallway, the other student's rooms and even outside. Not a gust of wind, rattle of leaves, snore, creaky floorboard or footstep could be heard. It was as though the whole world had stopped; to listen and to watch and to just even try to imagine what pain we must be feeling.

By 'we' I mean Vin, Trixie and me. No-one else knew about Newton and that hurt. Not even his dad. We were the ones carrying the burden. We were the ones that failed to protect him. In fact _I _was. It was _my _job, my whole existence in INK was to fight, to protect and I failed to do that. It's all my fault. Now he's gone and I know the team hate me.

It's my fault.

_This isn't real. _I repeatedly said to myself. _This can't be real. Tomorrow I'm going to wake up and find out this was all just one stupid dream. No, not a dream. A nightmare. A stupid, pointless, harmless little nightmare that is in no way real. Just fragments of my imagination freaking me out. Tomorrow he's going to be sitting in his usual place, speaking with his annoyingly squeaky voice that hadn't yet had a chance to deepen. He's going to crack his little smile and he's going to be so bouncy it'll drive me insane. As usual. _But no matter what I told myself, I was never convinced. If this is a nightmare then why do I feel like shit? Why does it hurt so much? You can't feel pain like this in nightmares...

There was a quiet knock at my door. I tensed, but stayed silent. I heard the floorboards give a small creak as the person nervously shifted their weight from foot to foot. They knocked a second time. I ignored it. _Just leave me alone! _I wanted to say. But I didn't, I stayed silent. I didn't even look up as the door handle turned, I just pretended to be asleep. "Zero?" It was Vin. Of course it was Vin. It's always Vin.

"Yeah?" I gave a small sigh and raised my head, quietly moving into a sitting position. Vin silently closed the door behind him before walking over to my bed, I watched his outline all the way before I leant over my bed and tugged one of the curtains open causing a small amount of light to flood into the room.

Vin was hovering uncertainly, now unsure whether he should be here. I patted the edge of my bed, where he perched before swinging his legs over and crossing them beneath him. "I couldn't sleep." He admitted, after a lengthy silence. I just shrugged. We sat in silence for a second time. The worst kind of silence. Tense and awkward. "Look, I need to talk about it. I know you don't, you're made of steel, but not everyone is. I'm definitely not." Vin blurted out. My eyes widened and he broke. "I just can't… I don't know what to say." He whispered. "It just hurts. Really bad." He stared into his lap, but his tears did not go unnoticed.

I blinked and stifled a sob. He gave a yell, he probably though I was lurching forwards to punch him or something. I wrapped him into a hug and buried my face into his shoulder. "No-one's made of steel." I murmured. He was stiff with surprise, until he realised I wasn't hurting him, then his body relaxed and he hugged me back. Then and only then, in the comfort of Vin's arms did the tears fall once more. Both of us just hugged and cried and in that moment understood each other in a way no 'chat' could ever compare to.

* * *

><p>After the hug we sat and talked in hush whispers, myself admitting more than I would've preferred, but still, I don't mind. I trusted Vin, now I trust him even more. Normally I would bottle everything up, I wouldn't like to tell anyone how I felt, but with Vin I just couldn't seem to keep it in. We were both feeling exactly the same, so what use was bottling it going to do?<p>

I feel bad, we both do. Survivor's Guilt, I'm told it's called. Newton didn't even get to become a teenager and that totally sucks. I mean, the only thing suckier is having a child who bites it at eleven. Check that off the list, Newton's dad. What's more he still doesn't know. It's been around six hours- according to my clock- and he hasn't heard a peep, because we can't tell him, it would basically be like handing ourselves in to Macbeth. It would completely throw away our secret identities and sign ourselves up for death.

Anyway, things have happened. Newton's dead. We're grieving, alone, in secret, because we are INK, everything that happens stays secret. With No Exceptions. Vin has explained to me that it wasn't my fault. If anything it was Macbeth's, but he told me, he downright ordered me not to blame myself, because, I couldn't have done anything to prevent it. That being said didn't actually make me feel any better. But back in present time, Vin was getting ready to leave. Vin walked over to the door, scuffing his feet against the carpet as he did, his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets and posture aggressively poor. He opened it, made to go through but then he paused, leant in the doorway and turned back to me. "Y'know Zero, I'm always here if you need to talk."

I raised my eyes from the bed sheets pooled around my legs as I attempted to untangle them and my mouth forming a small, sad smile. "I know." I replied with a slight nod. "It was good to talk. See you tomorrow, Vin."

His eyes left my face, to be faced with the carpet. He stood there in silence for a moment, looking like he was having an inner-battle with himself and then opened his mouth to reply. "Zero, I need to tell you something. Zero I-" his voice cracked, eyes widened with surprise, shock and, disappointment? He gulped and shook his head. "I'll see you tomorrow." Back to his normal, jokey self, he gave me a small wink. "Best to at least try to get some sleep." Then he left, weaving his way through the labyrinth of corridors back to the boy's dorm.

Now, as I lie in my bed, my sheets drawn to my chin and legs stretched out I wonder why my heart flipped when he winked at me. We're friends… Best friends, I guess? I certainly wouldn't talk to anyone other than him about my emotions... I mean, there wasn't anyone else here that I could talk to, even if I wanted to and even then, I seem to be his first choice too. But then why? I don't understand it. It felt weird, alien to me. I need to ask Trixie tomorrow, she'll know why, she'll know what it is. Trixie always knows. Trixie... She'll know, if she's even able to open her mouth without crying. We need to meet in headquarters and get briefed on this. We can't allow ourselves to act any different; it will come at a cost, maybe that cost will be our lives and we can not afford to lose another agent.

Not now, not ever.

* * *

><p>I heard the familiar sound of my door slamming shut, which thankfully awoke me from the nightmare I had been stuck in. My eyes flew open, and I took large gulps of clean air, noting that I was in fact not bound, but my feet were again tangled in my bed sheets. I allowed myself to breathe a huge sigh of relief. Vin was pressed against my door, holding it shut while someone on the other side attempted to force entry. I yawned, but smothered it with my hand and tugged at the sheets twisted around my legs. I only managed to lose my balance and fall off the bed, where I was able to pull off the sweat-soaked fabric. <em>Gross. <em>"Vin? What's going on?" I asked the panicking blonde-haired boy, sleepily, rubbing my eyes whilst I climbed to my feet and stumbled over to him.

"Burt's trying to kill me, there's no Soper to keep him in check now; he can do what ever he wants!" Vin exclaimed, his eyes wide as Burt pounded against my door once again. Vin gave a startled yelp as it opened a couple of centimetres before he used his body to slam it shut once again.

I rolled my eyes, but inside it was slightly worrying. I guessed I was going to have to defuse the situation. _Again. _I quickly jogged over to the door and hammered on the wood. "Burt! If you don't stop right now, you and your undies will be hanging from the roof. Some of us are _trying _to sleep!" I yelled through the door, shooting Vin a side-ways wink when the banging subsided. He gave a huge sigh of relief and collapsed against the door, shooting me a grateful smile. I swayed over to my wardrobe, paused, turned back to Vin and stared at him. "Wait outside while I change." I instructed, yanking the door open.

Vin's eyes widened again. "I'll be dead before I can take one step." He tilted his head towards the ground, looked up at me and pouted, shooting me a very good puppy-dog face. "You don't want that do you?" I gritted my teeth, trying to avoid eye contact with Vin, but I couldn't draw my eyes away. _Must. Resist. Puppy-Dog eyes. Must. Stay. Strong. Mustn't. Give. In._

I groaned, he was getting good with his guilt trip and puppy dog eyes. "Fine." Then glared at him. "But if you look, I'll give you a world of pain." I paused, my lips breaking out in a small smile. "Then I'll let Burt have you." I said sweetly.

Vin looked grossed out. "Zero, you know I wouldn't." He shuddered. "I am not, like, a pervert or anything." He turned away from me and retreated to the corner, sitting down with his legs crossed beneath him, head on his knees and arms covering his face. I changed as quickly as I could, sneaking peeks at Vin to make sure he wasn't watching. He couldn't see anything, I couldn't let him. It would be too awful.

"Okay, I'm good." I said, running a comb through my hair as Vin turned around to face me. He grinned at me. I didn't smile back. My mind repeatedly drifted to how he could hide all the pain he was feeling, all underneath his breath-taking smile. My mind gave a metal jerk. _Breath taking...? Okay... I'll just take that as a minor slip up, my brain must have somehow disconnected from any kind of sense I had. _"Okay. Um, we gotta go to HQ and brief everyone over what happened... last night."

Vin gave an understanding nod of his head. "We can't go revealing our identities, he wouldn't want that." I bit my lip. I didn't say anything, I just nodded in agreement. "Let's go then." I grabbed my headphones and quickly pulled them on before nodding at Vin as a sign that I was ready. I lead the way to Trixie's room, politely knocked on the door and opened it when she called decent. She was fully dressed so I allowed Vin to enter. Trixie's eyes had red rims which were very obvious. You couldn't miss them. I very badly applied concealer and some foundation, attempting to cover it up. Trixie didn't seem bothered. Her eyes were listless, it was as though she hadn't noticed we were in the room. I took a step back to admire me handiwork. I smothered it more so it blended in with Trixie's skin tone, then shrugged and glanced over to Vin for advice.

He shrugged and shot me a measly thumbs-up. "Come on Trix. We need to talk." I said, sighing as I slipped my arms underneath hers and lifted her out of her seat. She was a dead weight in my arms. I groaned. "Trix, come on. You have to walk, I'm not dragging your butt up to HQ." Five minutes later I dumped Trixie in her reddish-maroon chair. She hadn't responded so I shared her weight with Vin, the both of us hauling her into the room. I collapsed next to her and snapped my fingers in her face. "Trix. Focus. On. Me." She didn't make an attempt to even glance up. I gritted my teeth, trying to suppress the wall of anger building up. "Trixie, I'm talking to you." And nothing. No reply, no movement, not even a freaking blink.

"Trix, it's okay to be sad but you have to hold yourself together. We're a team. We can handle this, you've just got to trust us." Vin gently tried to coax an answer out of her. It didn't work.

"Trixie. Pull. Yourself. Together. You can't do this to us, you're the leader so lead." I growled. "You've had your time to grieve now quit it, we need you! D'you think Newton would want this? D'you think he'd want you to starve, to become a shell of yourself?" Trixie didn't reply. I roughly shook her.

"Come on, Trix. You're always saying that keeping our identities secret is our main priority, but if we screw that up then we'd be in a whole heap of trouble." Vin was still attempting to play Good cop to my Bad cop, like in those old police shows. Although, unlike the convenient set-up in TV shows, it wasn't working in reality.

"TRIXIE! SNAP OUT OF IT!" I could feel tears building up. "You can't do this, it's selfish! We're just as sad as you are, yet we're holding it together." I exclaimed, motioning to myself and Vin, both of us by this time were barely keeping it in, showing a very bad example of _holding it together. _"You have to freaking hold it together! I know it hurts, but you gotta just pretend. We're managing it." I was met with silence. This _'managing it' _was basically tilting on the edge of breakdown. Vin wrapped his arms around me, pulling me off her as I shook her harder. "I'm scared!" I yelled as Vin dragged me away. I wanted to hit something. It's so unfair! Trixie can't stay like this, she's the leader, the most level-headed person I know. And Newton didn't get to be a teenager! He was little and I'm sad yet I need to hold it in, but I can't do it any more. I can't hold it in. I can't always be the strong person everyone expects me to be.

Vin paused, his expression shocked with my statement. _I'm Zero. I don't get scared. Well, that's all bullshit. I do get scared and I can't stay in denial forever. _"I am scared and I don't know what to do. I can't lead, Trix. We need you to lead us. Just because Newton's gone it doesn't mean INK is too. We're still here and we are waiting for you." I stared up at her. "INK's main focus was to protect the students of Pinkerton from Macbeth. That hasn't changed, everyone here still needs us, they're relying on us even if they don't know it."

"Do you really want to let them down?" Vin asked. He was pulling the Guilt Trip and he was darn good at it. Almost better than me, and I'm awesome at it. "Do you want to let _us _down?"

Trixie blinked, but stayed silent. Inside me head I cursed. Trixie lifted her head up. "What're you doing? We're going to be late for class." My mouth dropped open. Before I'd even registered the movement Vin had wrapped us both in a hug. I buried my head in his shoulder, sighing deeply, his arms tightening around us as he just muttered under his breath. I swear I heard _thank you _repeated several times.

_Now we've just gotta survive._

As a matter of fact, that is easier said than done.

Much easier.


	6. An Unexpected Outing Part 1

It's been five days. Five days of complete hell. Newton's _disappearance _sparked curiosity with Macbeth. She grilled us, catching us at the most unexpected times, screaming in our faces, trying to get us to crack and explain where he was. We didn't. Thankfully. Now we were waiting outside Trixie's room. She was taking forever just getting dressed. _How long does it take? Definitely not twenty-freaking-minutes. _I balled my hand into a fist, banging on her door as loud as I dared. "Trix, hurry up." I yelled, impatiently tapping my foot against the floor.

Vin jumped out of his skin. I smirked, watching as he controlled himself and tried to act cool. _Oh Vin. _"You ready for another fun-packed day?" He asked, running his fingers through his blonde hair. His sarcasm wasn't brilliant, but he was getting better.

"You betcha." I replied with my classic eye-roll. School wasn't good. Not that it was to begin with, but at least before it was bearable, now it was complete hell. Even outside of school sucked. Badly. "Trixie! How long does it take?" I exclaimed, hitting the door again, Vin was just milling around, every so often he could get up spin in a small circle before leaning back against the door again. I didn't see any point in the activity. It just made you dizzy.

I almost hit Trixie in the face when the door opened, as I went to bang on the door for a third time. Good thing she had the sense to duck. After my fist was out of the way, she raised to her full height. "Sorry guys. I lost my left shoe." She glared down at it like she was expecting it to shy away. _The shoe isn't alive, I'm certain that a shoe is an inanimate object, unless I've been missing something all these years? _"It was in my bookcase for some weird reason."

Vin thought that the explanation was hilarious and only just stopped himself from laughing. I had to admit, it did sound quite odd. I accidentally nudged Vin as I stole a quick glance at his watch. He raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "Crud. Two minutes till class." I said, after observing the time. I met Vin and Trixie's gazes and gave a grimace. "You up for a sprint?" I asked. This was one of my least favourite things of the morning. Since the first day of Newton's absence we have had to sprint to class. Two out of Three days we've been late. I intend to make that Two out of Four days.

I didn't even wait for their answer, but did hear Vin's groan. Almost simultaneously we sprang into a run. I used long strides which propelled me forwards, along the deserted corridors. I led the sprint, Vin and Trixie struggled to keep up with me. _This is where height can come to an advantage. _We reached the stairs and hurtled down them, almost slipping several times. "Twenty seconds!" Vin panted, his voice rising in panic, his arms flapping about as he tried to increase his speed. "We're not going to make it!"

"Oh, yes we are." I said in grim determination. _I am not, I repeat, I am not going to be the singular person Macbeth picks on. That is not happening... again. _I threw my body against the door. It flew open, staying open for Vin and Trixie to race through before slamming shut behind them. I slid to an unsteady halt- almost having Vin run into me- grabbed the classroom door and pulled it open. We piled through the door, tripping one another up and ending up in a mangled heap on the floor.

"Ow!" Vin exclaimed. "Someone just kicked my ear."

"Who's digging me in the ribs?"

"Someone's crushing my arm!"

"Don't slid there, you're on my wrist!"

"Get off my leg, I can't move."

"That's my ankle!"

"Ow! My hair!"

"My nose! Alright, whose arm was that?"

"Watch it! You nearly poked me in the eye!"

"You're crushing me!"

"I can't breathe!"

I tried to move but there were cries of pain from Trixie and Vin, plus, unfortunately for me, I was underneath them both, so, I was basically being crushed underneath them. But, being at the bottom you would expect me to be the one complaining the most. In fact, all I complained about was Vin's elbow crushing my ribcage. "Oh, get up!" Macbeth snapped, grabbing Trixie and pulling her up just as the bell rang. I gasped as Trixie's nails scraped across my face. Trixie cried out in protest, realising that she was scratching someone. Vin was kicked in the side by Trixie's flailing feet, causing him to give a small jolt of surprise, his elbow pressing against my ribs much harder than before.

He rolled off me, clutching his side where he was kicked. _What is his problem? I hurt more than him! _My hands strayed to me check. I could feel something sticky and wet oozing out of the cut. I examined my hand, already knowing what I was going to see. A small amount of blood was on the tip of my fingers, staining them crimson red. _Great. _I looked up. Macbeth was standing over me, her hand ready to strike me. My mouth dropped open, eyes comically wide as I took this in. I quickly scrambled to my feet and ran to my seat before her hand had time to connect, Vin and Trixie hot on my heels. Macbeth glared at me. I averted her gaze, staring at my desk like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Vin touched my face where my cheek was cut. I winced, a jolt of pain spreading through my body as he quickly withdrew his hand. "Zero, you're bleeding!" He whispered, stating the complete obvious, before digging around in his pocket and revealing a pack of tissues. He peeled one out the packet and held it out. "Here." He said, putting it into my open hand. I smiled. _He's so sweet. _I used the tissue to wipe the blood off my face- Vin directing me- before holding it against the cut, attempting to stem the bleeding.

Every student sat to attention, they were sitting upright in their seats with their arms folded on the desks looking straight ahead in complete silence. There was silence, before Macbeth broke it with her annoyingly high-pitched voice. "Stand!" She snapped. I exchanged a glance with Vin. We both mirrored each other's expressions, irritation and rage. Reluctantly we stood. By _complete _coincidence we were the last to stand. "Today we are going on a little school outing." Me and Vin looked at each other, I could see a flicker of anxiety flash across his face before we both rolled our eyes. _Not again. _"Get on the bus. NOW!" Macbeth yelled, smacking her ruler against her desk for empathises

The others led the stampede to the coach, tittering excitedly, obviously thinking Macbeth had turned over a new leaf, although me, Vin and Trixie knew otherwise. I sighed, Vin casually put his arm around me, his other in the air, waving around madly. "Just think." He said, putting a very over-exaggerated posh accent on. "Maybe this time we will see a three headed tiger, what a wonderful sight that would be." He feigned extravagance, making his actions big and showy, like he was some kind of slick car dealer.

"Yeah, just _splendid._" I said, untangling myself and rolling my eyes at him. "Whatever. Just hurry up, I want that back seat." He grinned and jogged after me as I headed for the coach, running into Macbeth and dodging past her as she went to say something. Or more like scream something, as that's more her style.

We reached the coach at a speed-walk where the other students were piling in, pushing and shoving as they tried to get the seat the wanted. Trixie glided up to us, coming out of no-where. I didn't even bother asking where she'd been. It was pointless, and, to be perfectly honest, I wasn't particularly bothered. "Ladies first." Vin said stepping aside and motioning for me and Trixie to enter the coach before him.

"Lady?" I questioned, one eyebrow raised in a small arch, Vin nodded, deciding to go along with it. "You must be thinking of someone else." Vin burst into laughter, causing me to laugh too. Trixie just grinned and gave a microscopic shake of her head. Vin thought he was going to have to enter first so went for the stairs. I gave him a small push. "Ladies first." I grinned cheekily, repeating the same line and mimicking Vin's voice.

Vin tried to duck underneath my arm. "And men just before."

"You wish." we wrestled for a couple of moments before Trixie tapped us on the shoulder and politely told us to get moving. We grinned and I managed to slip past him, boarding the coach first and effectively winning the battle. I stuck my tongue out at him while he tried to get an arm around my neck and noogie me. I managed to push him off, dodging his arm as he gave another attempt.

"You guys are insane." Trixie said before climbing in after us.

I all but threw Little Fred and Hector out of the back seat. Luckily my presence was enough to intimidate them, causing them to promptly relocate to a seat three rows in front. I bagged the window seat, sitting down before anyone could protest. Vin slid in next to me while, sighing, Trixie took the aisle seat. I leaned in close as the coach gave a protesting squeak as it reluctantly pulled away from the school. "Now is it just me, or are you guys getting a huge sense of Déjà vu?"

Vin and Trixie nodded in agreement. "This is exactly like the time Macbeth turned everyone, bar me and Newton, into donkeys!" I shuddered at the memory. Being stuck in a tree for three and a half hours was not one of our best moments. "We have to stick together no matter what and..." Trixie pointedly gave me a stern glance. "Follow orders." I just rolled my eyes.

"It is important." Vin added, shrinking away in case I attacked.

Defeated, I sighed. "I'll be good." I promised, rolling my eyes because it sounded like the kind of promise a six-year-old would make to their mother before causing all kinds of chaos. Vin smothered his laughter with the back of his hand, while Trixie raised her eyebrows in her classic, _I'm serious, Zero_, face. I heard Macbeth snapping at Burt. I raised myself out of my seat. Macbeth was prowling the aisle, heading straight for us. "Shh." I whispered, placing a finger over my mouth as a warning. "Act casual." I sat down and attached my headphones to Vin's iPod, blaring out music. Vin fiddled with his watch, pretending to be trying to set it on the right time while Trixie acted like she was trying to sleep for the long journey.

"Zero!" Macbeth yelled. I jumped, so did Vin and Trixie.

"Uh, yeah?" I asked, curious a to what Macbeth was going to pin on me.

"Up the front. Now."

I folded my arms and stayed right where I was. "Make me." I replied. She had no right to move me, I'd done nothing wrong. She grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the seat, over Vin, and Trixie- who promptly ducked- while Vin reached out for me, just missing my hand. I gave a yell of surprise and protest. My foot brushed against Vin's shin, hard enough to hurt but not hard enough to bruise.

"Zero!" Vin exclaimed as I was bundled down the aisle and deposited in a seat, Macbeth blocking me in. I kneeled on the seat, looking back and Vin and Trixie in alarm. She pushed me down. _So much for sticking together._

"What is your problem?" I snapped, suppressing my overwhelming urge to hit her. Barely.

"Sit down and shut up." She instructed.

"But what did I do?" I pressed on. Macbeth ignored me. I kicked the seat in front of me and muttered in an undertone, making sure she couldn't hear me. "This is complete BS." Although I acted stroppy like a normal teenager, inside I was panicking, a complete nervous wreck. _Does she know? She can't know I'm a member of INK._

_I'd be doomed!_

_My life would be over._

_Again..._


	7. An Unexpected Outing Part 2

"My life is officially over!" I complained for the fourth time. We'd just got off the coach. Funnily enough, we arrived in a forest in the middle of nowhere. The coach journey took three agonisingly-long hours. I was stuck next to Macbeth. For. Three. Hours. She glared at me, threatened me, yelled at me and almost hit me, but I refused to say anything. She confiscated me headphones too! I just hope she doesn't find out how to work the communication system.

Vin gave me a sympathetic look, although he couldn't even imagine how bad it was. Trixie was drumming her foot against the floor, racking her brain for answers. "What would Macbeth want with you?" She asked, staring at me like I was some kind of bug under a microscope.

"For the millionth time, I don't know." I grumbled, tired of the same questions being repeated. If I knew then I would've said! Then an idea hit me. Macbeth wanted information, but we refused to give it to her but Macbeth isn't the type of person who gives up easily. "Spider!" I shouted. Trixie spun around in alarm, Vin jumped out of his skin for the second time in three hours. I began brushing my clothes desperately. "It's on me! It's on me!" I yelled, spinning around and doing some kind of crazy chicken dance.

Vin was staring at me like I was insane while Trixie tilted her head curiously, realising it was some kind of gag to cover up my real intentions since I don't normally freak out around spiders, imaginary or not. "It's on my back! Vin, get it off! Please, get it off!" He cautiously reached out and brushed my back in an attempt to get rid of the imaginary spider. I ran my hand across the lapel of my jacket and found it. The hidden microphone. "It's still on me!" I wailed while pulling the microphone off and dropping it on the floor.

I stamped on it several times with the heel of my shoe, keeping it pinned and twisting my foot making sure I crushed it; the microphone gave a high-pitched crackle of electricity, wires spewed out of the holes before I managed to completely destroy it. I panted before giving it an enormous kick, watching as it spun off into the foliage, disappearing from view. I smirked up at Vin and Trixie. "I think I found out why."

"A spider?" Vin questioned, one eyebrow raised in a thin arch.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head in disbelief, while behind Trixie faced-palmed. Vin looked even more confused because of our reactions. "No, _stupid. _It was a microphone!" I explained, watching as Vin's confused expression faded. "Macbeth must've put it on me when she pulled me away from you guys on the bus." Vin released a small _oh, _as he finally understood, nodding his head in agreement.

"She must've wanted to find out what happened to Newton. And others things… We can't say anything about… Things we are a part of… got it?"

"Yep." Me and Vin chorused, grinning at each other when we realised we said it at the same time.

"Move it!" Macbeth screamed at everyone. "Form a group, now!" The other kids slowly walked over to Macbeth, scuffing their feet across the ground and avoiding eye contact at all times. They formed a small group in front of her.

I rolled my eyes. Vin covered his ears with the palms of his hands, completely milking it, pretending the noise was deafening. "Ah!" He moaned. "My ears! My eaaars!" He continued this for a little while, stumbling around making me laugh until it hurt until Trixie, the killjoy that she is, reluctantly told him to be sensible.

We smirked at each other until just a look would set us off. Trixie tutted disapprovingly, but smiled a little. At least we were acting normal, that was the main thing. "I said, MOVE IT! Unless you want detention!" I exchanged a glance with Vin. I sighed and grabbed his arm, dragging him behind me as we joined the group. Trixie just stared at us, shaking her head slightly and smirking, a knowing look on her face, before jogging to catch up with us.

* * *

><p>I perched awkwardly on a rock, a huge boulder to be exact, pushing myself up in desperation while underneath me a figure clawed at the air just below my feet. It was cloaked in shadow making it even harder to identify it but right now it was sitting on its haunches and staring up at me. I could see the light reflected off its eyes giving them an eerie yellow glow. It launched upwards again catching my boot and almost taking it off. I bit back a scream and tore my eyes away, my hands searching for a decent enough ledge to help haul myself up, while my feet dangled dangerously close to the predator.<p>

_There! _My hand found a small crack in the rock. I wedged my fingers there and tested to see if it would hold- to my relief it did- before swinging my foot up onto a ledge and reaching up with my right hand to find something to grab on to. A stone whizzed past my ear and hit the predator on the shoulder; it gave an enraged roar before trying even harder to make me its next meal. A second stone smacked it right between the eyes, slowing it down, a third on the tip of its nose and a fourth tearing into the predators back.

"Keeping going, Aaron!" I panted, slowly but steadily climbing the small cliff to reach the group. It was ironic because last school trip, we'd lost Macbeth and Soper, after heading back the way we came and found the bridge broken, we had split into groups. Aaron had told me he didn't want me in his group because I had a short fuse. Now we were working together after I shared some rare Zero wisdom.

I looked up to find that I was nearly there, the edge on the cliff was barely three metres away. I sighed, ignoring the pain shooting through my body and my muscles begging me to stop before continuing to climb, almost falling as some rocks dislodged underneath my foot, crashing sounding as they tumbled down the rock face, almost hitting the predator as it attempted to climb up after me. I could hear that Aaron was still pelting the predator with rocks by the way it repeatedly shrieked with pain.

I stretched, my arm going into an awkward position as I searched for something strong enough to hold while I pulled myself up. Ideally I would find a tree root, but my search found nothing; only grass and dirt. "I gotcha." Aaron said, grabbing my arm after firing the last of his ammo at the creature. He groaned as he hauled me up onto the safe, even ground at the top of the cliff.

"Don't groan when you lift me." I said, feigning an expression of hurt as I rolled over the top. He just rolled his eyes. I panted, still lying on the floor; Aaron was collapsed two metres across from me, looking similar to a starfish. "Hey, you can't complain. You didn't just scale a bloody cliff and run through a freaking forest with that thing on your tail."

"But I did shoot that thing with your slingshot, preventing it from snacking on your foot." He reminded me, shooting the response back as if he had previously though it up, and passing back the contraption I made from a forked stick and a rubber band. I scooped it up and stuffed it in my pocket. "What the hell was that anyway?" He questioned, airing my exact thoughts as he reluctantly climbed to his feet.

"Beats me, but it's definitely a carnivore since I was on the menu." I replied, taking his outstretched hand. I used my other hand to push myself off the ground. My chest was killing me, my throat had closed up, my heart was still racing and I was nursing a painful stitch.

"You have dirt smudged all across your cheek." Aaron stated, guiding me as I attempted to scrub it off with the sleeve of my jacket. Most came off, leaving a thin line that almost looked like a scar running across my face. I knew my clothes, especially my left side and all along my back would be muddy too. Not to mention my hair, I could still feel the murky water dripping out, hitting my shoulder and streaking down my neck.

"Where are the others?" Little Fred asked, after breaking away from the group and tottering over to us, tugging at my jacket with his free hand. I rolled my eyes at Aaron. Didn't this little kid have any respect? I just nearly died from exhaustion, and was almost mauled by the predator below us.

I firmly pushed his hands away. "We'll find them." I promised; swatting a mosquito as it attempted to gorge on some of my blood. It left splattered bug insides on my arm which was gross. I wiped it away with a leaf I plucked off a nearby tree. I discarded the bug-innards-splattered-leaf as soon as possible, hurling it over the edge of the cliff. In the background I could hear Aaron's sarcastic _Nice _but he couldn't really talk, he'd squished one as it landed on his nose just five minutes earlier.

"But I want to know now." Little Fred whined, pouting as he balled his hands into tiny fists. "I want to go home!"

I gritted my teeth and double checked what I was going to say, making sure that it didn't sound mean because I didn't want him bawling on me. "Look, we're trying to get home and find the others, if I knew anything I would say, okay?" He sniffed and nodded, all teary-eyed which left me mystified. I was sure I hadn't said anything hurtful. "Don't cry." I said as soothingly as possible. I was being remarkably patient for me.

"I don't like the woods." He whispered, giving a frightened glance around at the trees as the whipped around, making the leaves give menacing rustles. Little Fred's pupils dilated with fear as he protectively clutched his stuffed rabbit closer, drawing comfort from the little animal he carried everywhere.

After what I had just been through, I actually didn't blame him. I crouched down next to him so I was level with his face. "Look, just stick near me if you're scared, but don't pester me, okay? I'm just as lost as you." My mind drifted to thoughts of Vin and Trixie and what they might be facing where ever they are. "We all are."

* * *

><p>Aaron raised an eyebrow; it created a thin arch and just highlighted his amusement. "You seem to have an entourage."<p>

I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to look back to where I knew Little Fred was stumbling after us. "Last time I checked, one person doesn't make up an entourage." I replied curtly, before slowing down to a speed Little Fred would be able to keep up with.

Shaking his head, Aaron slowed his pace to match my own. "Why is he tailing us?"

I sighed before leaning closer, making sure we weren't over-head. Little Fred probably wouldn't be happy if everyone knew his little secret. "The kid's scared of the forest so I said he could stick close if he wanted." Aaron gave a snort. "I didn't want him crying on me or anything." I added defensively.

"He's scared of the forest? A bunch of trees?" Aaron asked, smirking.

I tutted loudly. "So what?" I hissed, my eyes gleaming with mild fury. "After that _thing _chased me, I don't actually blame him."

Aaron held his hands up in a surrender sign, his smirk instantly gone. "Whoa, no need to bite me head off, I was just joking." We walked in a quite tense and very awkward silence for the next couple of minutes.

I surveyed our group, counting their heads to make sure they were all there. Peggy, Aaron, Me, Little Fred, Kate, Kathy and Li were all accounted for. Kate was a tall blonde girl with blue eyes who wore a purple short-sleeved tee-shirt and while trousers. Li was a small, skinny Chinese boy with short black hair and grey eyes, who wore a green short-sleeved tee-shirt and brown trousers. Both had been in Aaron's group last time, agreeing with him when he refused to let us into his group. Li even joined in with throwing us away, saying Trixie always bossed people around, which was true.

Suddenly the forest was filled with some horrible tetchy music, shattering the peace. It made me jump. I knew it wasn't my phone, my ringtone was of a solo for a base guitar during one of my many favourite rock songs, but I was bewildered when my phone began vibrating, still blaring out the horrible music. "What _is_ that?" Aaron exclaimed, clamping his hand over his ears.

I dug around in my pocket, retrieving my phone and pulling it out. I had returned it to my pocket when Macbeth wasn't looking as I had previously stashed it in my boot and played the innocent '_I don't have a phone' _gag. "Vin's idea of a joke, he's gone and changed my ringtone." I answered before looking at the screen and unlocking my phone before answering it. "Hello? Vin is this you? Funny joke changing my ringtone. Hilarious. I'm literally in stitches."

_"…"_

"Is anyone there? Vin? Trixie?"

_"…"_

"Are you okay…?"

_"…"_

" Guy's? This isn't funny! Answer me, Vin, Trixe! ... Alright, how did you get my number?"

_"…"_

I swapped an alarmed glance with Aaron before putting the phone on speaker-phone so he could hear too. Not that there was anything to hear. "How did you keep your phone?" He whispered, referring to the fact that everyone had their phones confiscated by Macbeth earlier.

"I hide it in my boot." I explained, cupping the receiver with a hand to prevent whoever was on the other side from hearing us. Aaron rolled his eyes, obviously thinking along the same lines as I had earlier; Macbeth would murder me if she found out. I removed my hand and turned back to my phone. "Answer me!" Again I was met with the same silence filled with something that sounded like static. "Okay, I don't take kindly to prank calls. I'm gunna hunt your ass down and when I find you I'm gunna squish you like a-"

"…_Help."_

I stopped in mid-sentence of my rant. "Sorry?" I choked out, hardly believing I just heard a croaky voice on the other end on the phone. "Is this a joke? Vin, Trix, is that you?"

"_Help… me…"_

"Guys? Please let this be a joke." My hands were beginning to shake, I took deep breaths to calm myself but this phone call was freaking me out. I jumped to the conclusion that this was in fact not a joke. "O-okay… Are… Are you hurt? W-where are you? Who are you?" I asked, failing to control my shaking voice, Aaron looked pretty scared, he was mouthing something but it was too fast to make out. I knew it contained a lot of swearwords since something similar was running through my own head.

"_Help me…" _Again the creepy, pained voice wheezed into the phone. _"Help me."_

"I-I can't help you if you don't tell me w-what's wrong."

"_Help me… Help me! HELP MEEEEEE!" _The voice screamed out, an endless wail. I ended the call but the voice still screamed out of my phone. My hands were shaking so much I dropped my phone; my heart was racing as I brought my boot down on the surface, cracking the screen. _"HELP MEEEEE!" _Again and again I stamped on it until the wail was silenced and my phone was completely ruined.

I backed away from it, walking into Aaron as I stumbled backwards. Little Fred was in tears, sobbing his heart out while Kate and Kathy both tried to comfort him, although were actually as shaken up as Little Fred himself. Peggy looked close to tears as Li hugged her in an attempt to calm her down. I could barely feel Aaron as he poked my arm, he then jabbed me in the ribs. "Are you okay?" He asked, his face paler than usual, when I turned to him. "You look like you're going to faint."

I shook my head and stared down at the phone as I took a seat on a nearby tree stump. "Why do you care? You hate me!" I snapped, allowing the rest of my sentence to trail off, Aaron looked a little shocked and maybe annoyed about my outburst. It was true though, he'd never exchanged anything other than polite 'hello's' or 'excuse me's' when I was in the way. He walked off to check on the rest of the group, leaving me to my thoughts.

My thoughts were stuck with my friends, where ever they may be. I know had no way to contact them; Macbeth had confiscated my headphones and I'd just wrecked my phone so soon after fixing it. _Let Vin and Trixie be okay. Please let just them be okay._

_Someone, anyone protect them._

_Please._


	8. Just My Luck Part 1

Okay, so you're probably wondering how everything went, truthfully, in no other words completely insane and utterly confusing. I mean, everything went to shit so fast. Good news; I'm going to explain. Bad news; I'm lost, practically alone and truthfully, terrified.

* * *

><p>"Phones." Macbeth snapped, holding out a bucket and giving it a shake for empathises. Loud, reluctant groans escaped the students as they pulled out their precious phones and placed them in the bucket. But, I'm not like <em>other students, <em>and I'm not surrendering my phone without a fight. It has sensitive information and sentimental value installed inside. Pssh, just bullshitting, it's my last line of communication; hopefully I'll be able to find a way to tune into our com. frequency if we get separated.

"Whoa!" I yelled as I _tripped _over some tree roots. Arms wind-milling for a moment, the hard ground rushing up to meet me as I sprawled out across the floor, gripping my foot and rolling around as I groaned in pain, completely milking my _injury_. But the transition wasn't as innocent as you were lead to believe. While falling I sneaked my hand in my pocket, concealing my phone and hiding it in the palm of my hand. When I gripped my boot, I slid my phone into it; cleverly hiding it there where no-one would bother to look. _Hopefully._

"Zero!" Vin exclaimed, drawing attention to us both as he quickly knelt down to examine my _injured_ foot. "Are you okay?" I shot him a glare as it seemed to be the reasonable thing to do in my position. Vin winced slightly, looking as if he wanted to back away to a reasonable distance that would keep him safe from my whack up-side the head. "Sorry, standard question. Where does it hurt?"

I gave a snort. "It doesn't hurt!" I snapped as it was usual for me to deny all knowledge of pain. I pushed myself off the ground, annoyingly with a little help from Vin, keeping all of my weight off my right foot. I wasn't pretending on the pain, I caught my foot on a tree root and twisted it when I pretended to fall. But, I've had many a twisted ankle, so I knew the pain was temporary.

"Phone!" Macbeth was looming over me rattling the bucket in my face.

"Phone?" I echoed, a look of innocence plastered on my face. "Don't have one." I said with a simple shrug, watching Macbeth as the words sunk in.

"Dirty, stinking liar doesn't have a phone, does she? We'll see about that." Macbeth muttered. I raised an eyebrow, the words easily comprehensible for me. "Turn out your pockets!" Macbeth yelled, leaning her face inches from my own.

I took a step back, uncomfortable with her presence and feigned meekness as I pushed my hands in my pockets and turned them inside out. They were basically empty, all but a few innocent-looking paper clips, a normal plain ball-point pen with a cheap store logo branded on it, three elastic bands and a small pocket-torch. The items lay on my outstretched palm while Macbeth glared at me. "I told you, no phone." I closed my hand and returned the said items to my pocket.

Macbeth glowered at me before screaming full-force at Vin. "PHONE. BUCKET. NOW." I winced guiltily, knowing that the rage Macbeth was venting on him was caused by me. Vin's expression was a perfect example of contempt as he pulled out his phone and threw it into the bucket, Trixie and Newton following suit.

Only Newton didn't follow suit. Because Newton wasn't there. Newton was dead. And nothing I could do would ever change that. It was strange really, I had repeatedly seen Newton. Joining us at breakfast, sitting next to Trixie in class, laughing along with Trixie as me and Vin messed around, play-fighting and acting is nothing was wrong, while our brains mentally screamed at us. It was like we had forgotten about him, or at least were trying to. We were trying to save pain, but what was more painful? Pretending he never existed, or remembering?

_Why is life so freaking difficult?_

"Cut the crap, Zero, where'd you put your phone?" Vin asked out of the corner of his mouth once he was sure Macbeth was out of earshot. I was alarmed at how easily I had tuned out, quietly scolding myself. I couldn't allow even a single lapse in my attention. But then again… What was the point? There's nothing to gain. We're in Macbeth's territory. Now Soper's gone none of us are safe any more.

I gave a small shrug and pretending to use Vin's shoulder to prop myself up on my _injured _foot before I leant forward and whispered in his ear, so no-one could eavesdrop and consequently rat me out to Macbeth. "Like I'd give my phone to Macbeth. I hid it in my boot when I _fell_."

Vin chuckled. "Classic Zero Gag. The-Fall-Boot-Boot-Phone tactic."

I tested my foot on the ground, wincing as a small jolt of pain ran up my leg, before stamping down hard, causing my ankle to practically scream in protest. Searing pain shooting up my leg like fire. I bit my lip, smothering my pain-filled cry. I tested it again and the pain had eased, it had relatively disappeared. That was my fool-proof tactic. Logically, you'd think it hurt more, but normally you'd have to walk off a twisted ankle. By using that tactic it hurt so much at once that the small pain beforehand feels like a tickle compared to it. "Wait a minute. That makes no sense."

"Yeah, but it sounds awesome." I just rolled my eyes in response, so tempted to say; _no, it makes you sound like an idiot, _but I didn't have the heart.

* * *

><p><em>Crack. <em>My head jerked in the direction of the noise, causing Vin to break off his sentence to glance at the seemingly uninteresting trees too. I peered into the gloomy forest, determined to find the source this time. I had previously concluded that we were being stalked, but the big question was; by what? "Uh, Zero, are you okay? You seem… tense." I turned back to be faced with Vin's concerned expression and Trixie's gaze boring into the back of my head, demanding an answer.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." I replied; giving a second behind me to double check nothing was there. "Fine." Out of the corner of my eye I could see Vin and Trixie exchange knowing looks. They didn't believe it for a second. _Gosh, why do they always know?_

_Rustle. _I spun around to be faced with a pair of glowing eyes. I gasped loudly, my gaze never leaving the golden orbs as they drew closer. "Guys." I squeaked, which was totally unlike me. Vin was instantly by my side, checking to see if I was okay, before glancing around to see what I was staring at. Let's just say he found it. Trixie quickly joined after she realised there was a hold up. I pointed ahead at the eyes as they blinked, growing larger by the second. A loud, feline growl echoed, shattering the peace and causing every student to stop in their tracks.

They glanced around, an anxious titter of voices rising by the second. Burt snatched a nearby branch, obviously in an attempt to protect himself and Van who was clutching onto his arm, looking thoroughly terrified. A roar came from straight ahead of us, forcing me to snap into action. "Run!" I exclaimed, reaching out and grabbing Vin's wrist and Trixie's arm, dragging them behind me as I tore away from the trees.

"RUN!" I have no idea who sounded the alarm, much louder than mine, but the students obviously sprang into action after I promptly hared away from the tree-line, pulling my friends behind me. Students were screaming and racing around, pushing and shoving each other in a mad attempt to escape. Students ran into me, I felt pain jolt through my arm as something hit it. Then, I lost my grip on Trixie, my voice drowned out as I yelled for her, Vin doing the same but making no difference. I could see her red headband, but she was heading in the wrong direction, being pulled along by the crowd.

"Trixie! Trix!" My hand slipped down his arm, I tightened my grip, my hand holding Vin's in a vice-like grip. I didn't even have time to feel embarrassed, that's how chaotic it was. "Trixie?" I screamed, scanning the running students, trying to glimpse her distinctive red head-band among the throng. She'd disappeared, they'd pulled her out of sight. "Trixie!" I had to find her, we had to stick together otherwise we couldn't be able to contact each other!

Well, technically, we could. I just had to stay with Vin, since he still had his watch and Trixie her pen. A body shoved against me, I wind-milled and just about regained my balance when someone pushed me out of the way. I was knocked sideways, my hand slipping from Vin's. _So much for staying with him. _I could see him shout, and his hand shoot out to grab my own but he was shoved away, merging with the crowd. I gave a yell as I crashed down, sprawling across the ground and painfully smacking my hip, hard enough to bruise.

I curled into a ball as feet stampeded towards me, knowing I'd never be able to get up with everyone shoving above. I braced for impact but instead found myself being pulled to my feet. "Come on!" I couldn't see who had hold of me, but someone had lifted me off the ground and was bundling me away from the centre of the screaming students.

"Vin!" I shouted, thrashing in their arms. I couldn't lose him. I couldn't! "VIN! VIN WHERE ARE YOU?" I couldn't see him, the crowd was thinning, people had disappeared down the various tracks. "VIN! ANSWER ME, VIN! PLEASE; ANSWER ME!" Ahead of me I could see a small group of people crowded near a slope, doubled over as they tried to regain their breath.

"You nearly got trampled!" I was released and quickly spun around. Aaron was there. He was glancing around; making sure the creature hadn't followed us.

"Oh no." I whispered as I surveyed our group. Neither Vin or Trixie were present, I'd been completely separated from them. In fact, our group consisted of Little Fred, Peggy, Aaron, Me, Kate, Kathy and Li. "Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no!" Out of the corner of my eye I could see a shadowy figure slowly approaching, keeping low as it stalked towards us. "Oh crap. Ohmyfreakinggodareyouactuallyserious? Imeanwhythefuckareyousocruel?" The figure gave a menacing growl. I instantly began tearing off in the opposite direction.

Aaron gave a yell ordering the others to sprint as fast as they could. Obviously it wasn't worded like that. Nor was it as polite as that, because, in reality, when is anyone ever polite when they are completely terrified? Aaron's shout was actually worded like this, _'OH SHIIIIT! EVERYBODY FUCKING RUN FOR YOUR GOD-DAMN FUCKING LIVES!'_

I glanced over my shoulder. "Go up the slope, I'll lead it away!" I yelled, shooting Aaron a glare when he muttered something under his breath which sounded somewhat like _'go screw yourself' _which left me immensely confused. _He's the one who… res-save-_**helped **_me when I was about to get trampled. Now he's going to fight with me? Boys are weird. _I concluded. "I don't care about past mishaps, right now we need to forget about all that. If you want to get all of us outta here alive, you need to trust me. So go!" I commanded, shoving my slingshot into his hands, he gave me a long glance before nodding his head. He led the charge up the slope.

To my alarm the creature looked set to follow them. I searched in my pocket, pulled out an elastic band and scooping a stick off the ground. Conveniently, it was in the perfect forked shape. I tore the elastic so it was no longer circular but now a straight line. I quickly attached the band to the stick, creating a make-shift slingshot and using stones for ammo.

I pulled the band back twice, propelling two stones at the creature. One hit just below the eye, the other on its ear. It growled in anger, turning to me before breaking into a run. I dashed through the forest, expertly dodging the trees. I didn't take the tree roots spread across the floor into account and tripped, slashing my arm on a sharp thorn bush as I tumbled, sliding down into a ditch, coating myself in mud and tepid, possibly stagnant water. "Ah, you little bugger." I growled, inspecting my arm after I'd pushed myself off the ground, and scrambled up the side f the ditch, I began running flat-out, only just realising I'd abandoned my slingshot when I slipped into the ditch.

I saw a bolder lining a cliff. It was steep but looked climbable. I raced over and quickly scaled the boulder, pulling myself onto the very top of it as the creature shrieked in anger, bolting out of the undergrowth and racing towards me.

_Oh crap._

* * *

><p>I had my eyes practically glued to the floor while I walked. I refused to look at anyone after I'd explained that it was just a prank call. Only Little Fred and Peggy believed me, and the others didn't want to upset them so they kept their traps shut. But now Little Fred was complaining about a bad stomach-ache and that his feet were sore from walking. I gave a sigh and slowed my pace, dropping to the back of the group. I continued at a steady pace, falling in time with Aaron who was beside me. "Look; I'm sorry. The phone call was unexpected; it shouldn't have been able to happen so it freaked me out." I was going for the, <em>I'm not really bothered <em>attitude, but it just tumbled out, and to my horror, made me sound weak.

I sighed and continued walking in silence. _Fine, if he didn't want to acknowledge me, it's his problem! _"Understandable." I gave a small smirk and continued meandering at our slow pace, Little Fred's voice ringing out in another complaint to anyone who would listen. Right now, that was no-one, they were too busy wrapped up in their own thoughts. _At this rate we'll never make it back to Pinkerton! _"Hey, those clouds are coming in fast." Aaron commented. "I swear they were just on the horizon a minute ago, now they're almost directly overhead!"

"Pssh, yeah right. Clouds don't move in a minute." I replied, staring up into the sky. It was blue above us but I quickly found out he was correct as the horrible dark grey clouds blotted out the sun. "Not again." I mumbled, cursing inside my head as the rain began to fall. In a matter of seconds I was drenched, the rain lashing out mercilessly. I shouted and peered around try to locate our group. "Get closer together!" I commanded, directing them by placing two fingers in my mouth and giving long, loud whistles so they could find my position.

I continued to slowly edge into the centre of the clearing until my back hit someone else's. I turned and so did they. It was Li. Next to me was Aaron, while Peggy clung onto Li's arm and Kathy began yelling. It was incoherent for the first minute, then I realised Kate and Little Fred were missing. I stumbled forward, bracing myself against the violent wind. The ground was already saturated, puddles dotted around, some looking about the size small lakes. Little Fred was lying on the ground, in a slowly deepening puddle with Kate crouching down and repeatedly shaking him, looking extremely frightened when he didn't respond. I quickly jogged over to them, stepping into several puddles and having mud spray up my leg. I reached them. "Is he okay?"

"I- I- I… He j-just fell. I d-don't know w-what happened."

I could hear him groaning, and he was clutching his stomach. He was complaining about a stomach ache, but it can't be this bad. _Right?_ His shirt moved slightly when he rolled and I saw a red welt beside his belly-button. _Oh crap. _"What's wrong?" Aaron had finally located us after blindly stumbling through the forest for several moments. He kneeled down next to me and stared at Little Fred, his concern increasing with every passing second. I reached forward and slid his tee-shirt up slightly revealing more painful red welts near his belly button, most likely over his back, and arms too. "What the fu-" I elbowed him hard. His swearing is unneeded in this situation. "What is that?"

"Hives." I answered, sliding a hand under his neck and back, quickly scooping him into my arms and balancing him on my knee. Aaron looked even more puzzled than before. "It's caused by an allergic reaction." I explained.

"But he hasn't eaten anything since breakfast…"

I spotted something. Or more like heard something. "WASP!" I yelled. I could hear it, buzzing angrily as it was trapped beneath Little Fred's top. I could see the bulge but was worried that if I squished it than it's stinger might get stuck in Little Fred's skin, but if I released it what's to say it wouldn't sting me? I don't know if I'm allergic and by the looks on everyone's faces, I'm the only one who knows how to deal with this.

I put my thumb and index finger on either side of the bulge and pressed the together, pulling the fabric out, away from his body before crushing the insect between my fingers. I made sure it was properly dead before pulling it out and dropping it onto the floor. I could see several inflamed bumps where it had repeatedly stung him. _This isn't good. _"He needs his Epi-pen, and fast."

"Where's the first aid kit?" Aaron shouted, glancing over at the rest of the group who shrugged.

"I think Hector has it." Kate supplied.

"Helpful." I muttered under my breath. "Alright, we need to get to the nearest house, or hospital, whichever is closest. If we don't get out of this rain we're going to get hypothermia, and Little Fred's condition is only going to get worse the longer he's like this." They stood there, completely dumbfounded. "Let's move people!" I yelled, clapping my hands together for empathises.

I watched our group, _our group, _as they nodded, listening to every word before springing into action, Kate took Aaron's backpack while he pulled Peggy onto his back, piggy-backing the small girl as she looked so exhausted. Li took my own while I carried Little Fred, my worry increasing all the more. _Great, now everyone's relying on me to lead. I don't know how to lead! Why does this have to happen to me?_

_I just… I just really don't want to screw up._

_It's not just my life on the line now, it's everyone's._

_I hope I'm ready._


End file.
